Comments on ‘Dental homologies and evolutionary transformations in Caviomorpha (Hystricognathi, Rodentia): new data from the Paleogene of Peruvian Amazonia’

ABSTRACT

We offer brief commentaries on Boivin and Marivaux's account of caviomorph molar morphology and evolution. In accordance with Van Valen’s statement ‘Homology is resemblance caused by a continuity of information’, we reaffirm that understanding the dental morphology of rodents should be focused on identifying, i.e. keeping in sight, a given structure undergoing multiple transformation processes in ontogeny and phylogeny. Many of these evolutionary pathways may be tracked with reasonable confidence and can provide keys to recognize widespread patterns.

KEYWORDS:

• Caviomorphs
• dental homologies
• octodontoids

Acknowledgments

We are especially grateful to J Oliveira, C Montalvo and A Bezerra for actively facilitating access to materials, and M Andersen and H Baagøe (Zoological Museum, NHMD) for permission to use a photo of Clyomys laticeps from the PW Lund mammal collection.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.